4K on Xbox One S

Your Xbox One S can display 4K and HDR content. You'll need a 4K TV, but as soon as you have one, you'll be watching movies and TV in vibrant 4K.

What's 4K?

4K is a resolution for your TV. Technically called 4K UHD (or 4K Ultra HD, or 4K Ultra High Definition), it packs in four times as many pixels as a 1080p HDTV. This makes for a sharper, more detailed picture. To experience 4K, you must have three things: a 4K TV, a device that can play 4K content (like the Xbox One S), and 4K content.

4K upscaling

When you set your console resolution to 4K UHD, everything on the console—Home, games, and apps—will display at 4K. 4K content is displayed in its native 4K resolution, and other content (like 1080p content) is upscaled to 4K.

To set your resolution and upscale everything to 4K, double-tap the Xbox button to open the guide, go to Settings > All settings, and then choose Display & sound > Video output. For TV resolution, select 4K UHD.

4K in games and apps

You don't have to set your console resolution to 4K to play 4K content. You can set your console to another resolution, such as 1080p, and when a game or app requires 4K (and your TV supports the 4K mode it wants), it'll automatically switch to 4K. This is good if you want to play 1080p content in its native resolution, but also take advantage of the 4K resolution when playing 4K content.

To set your resolution to a lower resolution but switch to 4K when 4K content is played:

Open the guide and go to Settings > All settings > Display & sound > Video output and then make sure TV resolution is set to 720p or 1080p.

You must have an Xbox One S console and a 4K TV to display 4K and HDR content. If you're not sure whether you have the correct equipment, see Troubleshooting 4K and HDR on Xbox One S to learn how to check your console and TV.